Analysis of pathologic lesions in the livestock and poultry slaughtered in the meat establishments of Lithuania.

Abstract

Summary. The aim of study was to perform the analysis of pathological lesions in the livestock and poultry slaughtered in the meat establishments of Lithuania from 2000 to 2009 and to estimate the disease incidence investigating the post-mortem findings. It has been established that during the survey period, the highest number of pathologic lesions was registered in clinically healthy pigs: 14.92 ± 1.57 %, and the lowest number – in poultry: 0.95 ± 0.21 % (p < 0.001). The majority of lesions in poultry, pigs and cattle were classified as the lesions typical for non-infectious diseases − 98.70 %, 82.24 %, and 64.49 %, respectively. Although considerable lesion variations were observed in the organs or systems of different species of animals and poultry, the species influence on the incidence of lesions was statistically insignificant. The highest number of lesions was detected in the respiratory system and liver of cattle and pigs, and in the limbs and liver of turkeys.